First posted on Mark Is Cranky:
Lots of classic rock floating around my headspace this week. First, the death of Molly Hatchet's Danny Joe Brown. Then, the very evening I learned of Brown's death, stepson #2 comes home from work to tell me that there's a new classic rock station he's been listening to.
Yes, Manchester, New Hampshire, for years home to former classic rock (now 'modern' rock, whatever that means) station WGIR, has launched 96.5, The Mill. Now, the words 'new' and 'classic rock' look kinda funny sittin' right next to one another. But I figure, what the hey, maybe they're really gonna try something 'new', as in: diggin' deep into the back catalog.
I've only had a couple of chances to listen to them and so far it's a mixed bag. Hendrix: Hey Joe, All Along The Watchtower. Dang, Hendrix didn't release a lot of stuff in his short burst of stardom, but he did put out some very inspired and out-there material. Do we really have to play it so safe? Golden Earring: Radar Love. I think I read in a book somewhat that that band only recorded two songs: Radar Love and When The Bullet Hits The Bone. This morning they did segue from Steely Dan's "Do It Again" to Tom Petty's "Running Down The Dream", which was sort of unexpected.
Actually, I'm really not sure what to expect from this station. Their tag line is "Shut Up and Rock!", meaning that they're not big on yakkin' DJ's. This makes me suspect that there are no on-air personalities at all and the entire station is emailed in from a central computer in Utah. For now, I'll have to give them the occasional listen on the way home, when I tire of hearing about the latest rise in oil prices/explosion in Baghdad/murder trial results.
I'll get to that right after this here Molly Hatchet record feels old again.
Article comments
1 - BRICKLAYER
I'd like to get a tattoo of that album cover. On my chest.
Hey Mark, you might wanna check out the new Norma Jean album "O god, the aftermath". You may dig.
2 - Mark Saleski
hey, one of the amazon comments sez "absolute brutality". you tryin' ta kill me?
that last disc you recommended (which i can't friggin' remember at the moment) was pretty good, though the wife wasn't too please about it.
3 - Eric Olsen
hey, who wears the pants around there anyway?
4 - Mark Saleski
smartass.
and this coming from mr. dawn olsen.
5 - Eric Olsen
I assumed you would note the irony
I however, am the indisputed head of the household: I am the only one who holds his head in the hhouse
6 - Mark Saleski
since i'm a fuzzy-headed liberal, our house is purely egalitarian: there is no head of the household.
;-)
7 - Aaman
My absolute favorite classic rock station is Chicago's WDRV (The Drive), with their Deep Tracks program. What is really cool is that Deep Tracks streams 24x7 from their website. Some very rich, rare songs there.
8 - Mark Saleski
i understand why radio in general keeps to a tight playlist.
but i sometimes wonder if the logic that it's based on, that folks will change the station if they don't immediately recognize something, is flawed.
take my Hendrix example:
does the probabilty of a 'switch' go up significantly if "Machine Gun" (to use a moderately 'obscure' tune) is played.
it's not true for me, i know...but then again, i'm a music whore.
9 - Aaron, Duke De Mondo
i think commercial radio stations should play three GG Allin numbers for every half a chart song. I think i would die pleasantly miserable if i could hear "that was Mario. Here's GG with C**t Sucking Cannibal" just one time.
10 - sander
Hello,
[quote]
Golden Earring: Radar Love. I think I read in a book somewhat that that band only recorded two songs: Radar Love and When The Bullet Hits The Bone.
[/quote]
Don't forget the other 200+!!! songs.
In 2005 Golden Earring "celebrates" it's fourtieth year of excistance.
Check out www.golden-earring.nl and see for yourself. The band is still going strong with more than 150 gigs a year !!!!
11 - SFC Ski
"Their tag line is "Shut Up and Rock!", meaning that they're not big on yakkin' DJ's." Every station should folow this example.
12 - Mark Saleski
this morning i was shocked to hear an actual on-air person. he had the usual 'big cj voice', but wasn't particularly annoying or anything.
13 - SFC Ski
I can count on one hand the number of on-air personalities I found enjoyable or amusing, especially in drive time. I am usually in a surly mood then, morning zoo shows only make it worse.
14 - Mark Saleski
my idea of a good radio personality goes way, way back to the early seventies...late night radio, deep but non-agressive voice, very knowledgeable, etc.
15 - Mark
Good to see someone has already posted a correction on Golden Earring.
Without doubt one of the best bands in the world.
I have everything the have released and no other band is anything like them, they are simply the best to me (32 years of them and still i buy their recordings)